A fascinating discovery in a Neanderthal cave in northern Spain has revealed that these ancient hominids may have shared a passion for collecting with modern humans. A stash of 15 marine fossils was found in the Prado Vargas Cave, suggesting that Neanderthal children might have gathered these eye-catching specimens much like modern kids collect stickers or baseball cards.

The practice of collecting is indicative of advanced cognition, as it requires items to be imbued with symbolic meaning. The extent to which Neanderthals were capable of such abstract thought is still debated, but mounting evidence hints at their surprisingly complex imaginations. Neanderthals produced art, cared for the elderly and disabled, and may have even developed religious practices, such as the worship of a “bear cult.”

The 15 fossils recovered from the cave represent a unique and unprecedented hoard, as most Neanderthal assemblages consist of just one or two items. These fossils can be seen as evidence of an artistic interest or a curiosity for the forms of nature. The researchers suggest that, like modern humans, Neanderthals may have derived pleasure from the act of collecting.

Dated to between 39,800 and 54,600 years ago, the fossils come from a time and place with no known Homo sapiens presence, indicating that collecting activities and the associated abstract thinking were present in Neanderthals before the arrival of modern humans. The researchers speculate that the fossils might have been collected by children, noting that modern human kids often amass stickers, seashells, and other objects.

The collection of objects is characteristic of childhood, and remains of Neanderthal children were found in Prado Vargas. It is possible that the youngest members of the group, fascinated by these forms, started the collection. This discovery links our behavior to that of our extinct relatives, showing that Neanderthal groups gathered and collected fossils just as we do today.

#Neanderthals
#AncientHistory
#FossilCollection
#Archaeology
#Prehistoric
#Cognition
#StoneAge
#Paleolithic
#HistoricalDiscovery
#AncientArtifacts
#Childhood
#HumanEvolution
#Anthropology
#PradoVargas
#MarineFossils
Neanderthals
Fossils
Collection
Children
Archaeology
Prehistoric
Cognition
Stone Age
Paleolithic
Discovery
Artifacts
Evolution
Anthropology
History
Marine